French Cuisine

What exactly is "French Cuisine"? 
Baguette?
Escargot?
Foie Gras?
Sure, those are all foods served under the heading of "french cuisine".
While I am most certainly not an expert, after enjoying a truly fine french meal, it was so much more than that. It was a highlight of tastes, an explosion in the mouth feeling.

Since I have been away for such a long time, I wanted to treat my wife to something truly memorable for our 2nd wedding anniversary. Last year was a one table restaurant, where I re-inforced my vows to her. This time, I took her out to the top restaurant in Korea, Pierre Gagnaire's.

Im not going to tell you the price of the food there because you wouldn't believe me, and if you did, you'd think I was absolutely bonkers. Suffice it to say that I am bonkers, and you should have realized that earlier. That being said, the price was worth it for the experience. And here is why:

 The first dish to be delivered to our table came before menus were even given. I didn't even know this existed before. Its not appetizers, but amuse bouche, small bite size tidbits that come out before appetizers. I started out very diligently writing down notes on my cell phone of what everything was, but was very quickly overwhelmed, and decided to simply enjoy the tastes of the moment. The one that I do remember is that the drink was some kind of melon taste. The one that looks like a tomato top actually was two very delicious herb leaves on top of some gelatenous substance with a delicate cookie underneath. One of the others featured foie gras.


 The second thing to come out was breads. The large one was a piece of traditional french bread, followed by two italian breads and an english muffin. We weren't really sure  how we were supposed to eat the breads, as immediately after they came out, the appetizers came out, as shown below.

Jiyoung's dish was surrounded by a gelatin with a distinct beef gravy taste to it. I cannot remember entirely what was on the plate, but as you can see, much of it was soft dips, as is the next picture, which led us to infer we were supposed to eat the bread with the creamy sauces.

 My first appetizer was absolutely amazing. On the top, as a cover was a very thin crispy wafer. When removed, below could be found a clear gelatin followed by foie gras below that. When the wafer was crushed and mixed into the gelatin and foie gras, it resulted in a remarkably creamy explosion of taste with crispiness to compliment. I believe the gelatin was of a fruity nature, adding some refreshing taste to the whole thing.

 The second appetizer that I was treated to was this green soup. Or at least I thought it was until i dipped a spoon in to discover it was also two layers of creamy escargot and something else (perhaps egg). The consistency was of whipped jello. The taste... I cannot be sure of for now, but it was creamy, light, and delightful, and was especially good spread over bread.

 The third appetizer for me was a crab salad composed of small bits of crab, celery, a light gelatenous substance, and very few fresh greens. It was perfect for refreshing the palatte for the next course.

Jiyoung's 3rd course consisted of a kind of steamed fish (at least that was her opinion) drizzled with an absolutely to die for creamy white sauce. If I had to pick one individual dish that stood out, I would have to say it was this one for us. I really wish I had asked more details about that sauce because it just complimented the meat so perfectly.

 My 3rd course consisted of two dishes. The first was a beautifully created tuna wrap. The colors themselves were a work of art. The wraps were unfortunately so small that I couldn't get a full appreciative taste of it.

 The second dish of my 3rd course was a pear and gorgonzola icecream with vodka granite (slushy ice) topped by caviar. I can now say that yes, I have eaten caviar, and its not particularly my favorite thing in the world. It is like a tiny soft little ball of super salt coupled with a bit of fishiness. Despite the small bit of caviar, the rest of it was delicious and refreshing.

 And now we have finally come to the main course. Jiyoungs consisted of two small fillets of beef cooked medium rare placed over a well formed base of foie gras. In between the steaks was delicious carmalized apple that blended so magnificently with the steaks.

Jiyoung's second dish for the main course. Apparently she did not share this one with me, as I do not remember tasting it at all.

My main course started with some cuts of lamb meat, cooked also to medium rare. Because I had just come from Mongolia, I wasn't too thrilled to have to eat lamb, but I am glad that I did. It was like nothing I have ever tasted before. Definitely not like the lamb in Mongolia. As a unique twist, the lamb was topped with a light sprinkling of fresh ground dark chocolate. Below the lamb was a base of, well, perhaps it was turnip confit puree, but I cannot remember for sure.

The main course was complimented by a dollop of foie gras with something on top. Unfortunately, by this time, I was simply too overwhelmed by all of the explanations, all in Korean, many that Jiyoung didn't know either. So I couldn't remember the topping for this dish. However, after eating this and Jiyoung's main course, I have come to realize that foie gras, while a very adaptable food, generally speaking does not suit my taste.

 The last disy of my main course was a light salad. the central white dish shown in the pictures is actually not a dish, but rather ricotta cheese formed into a delicate dish.

Dessert has finally come. Jiyoung received two deserts. The first was a meringue, complete with the traditional burning alcohol flame show at the table. The second was an ice cream topped with an frothy coffey flavored cream and cubes of blueberry.

 My dessert consisted of two dishes as well. The first one was explicitly created just for me. It might as well have been called "Brett's Dessert" At first it looked like a freshly baked upside down cake of some kind. The fresh baked smell was heavy in the air as it was brought to me. However, putting a fork in it, I realized that it was more of a pudding. A nutty pudding with almonds and peanuts. It was so amazingly creamy as a pudding, and the nutty flavors complimented the textures to perfection. The second dish, unfortunately, I do not know the details of in terms of what it actually was. However, the taste was a kind of bread perhaps soaked in alcohol.

So, we have had amuse bouche, appetizers, 3rd course, and main course. All of this was wrapped up with dessert, right? Nope, not finished yet. Lastly, to come out was Petit fours. What exactly are petit fours, I did not know until that moment. Apparently they are the counterpart to amuse bouche, small tidbits at the end of the meal. One was an apple and banana gelatenous dessert, one was a kind of roll, one was chocolate, and there was a fourth as well. After all of that was eaten, with tea or coffee, we were to drink the last shotglass of liquid, something to completely clean our palatte. Jiyoung did not like that part, but I found it remarkably like Han-yak, the traditional korean herbal medicine, a very earthy taste.

The remarkable thing was that after the meal, I did not really feel "full" so to speak. However, my mouth was still an explosion of tastes, like little pop rocks candies bouncing around inside. The next morning as well, I was still not hungry (despite not feeling full the day before) and felt very light and fresh on my feet. It was a truly remarkable meal. Certainly not one I could afford again, but a great experience.